Illegal dumping - 'Any farm within 10 miles of a town is being targeted'

Trevor Smith (left) with his daughter Neeva (7) and Thomas Cooney, national environment and rural affairs chairman, IFA, on land he farms in Co Cavan. Trevor has a significant problem with rubbish of all kinds being dumped on his land. Photo: Lorraine Teevan

Farmers fear that illegal dumping on their land will get worse before it gets better.

Trevor Smith, a suckler farmer from Drumrora, outside Ballyjamesduff in Co Cavan, told the Farming Independent that he came across numerous rubbish bags dumped on his land last week.

"There was lots of different bags. I didn't look in to them. It's horrible to see rubbish discarded so thoughtlessly on the land," he said.

"This always happens after Christmas as every household has a build-up of rubbish. We hadn't had an issue in a while but whoever dumps this rubbish is definitely targeting small roads and scenic areas."

Farmers in north Dublin are also dealing with illegal dumping on their land. Sheep and livestock farmer Peter Rooney, who farms in Oldtown, said on the week before Christmas he woke up to 200 gallons of black oil dumped outside the gate of his farmhouse.

"Somebody obviously dumped them in the middle of the night. I was afraid to touch them in case they were dangerous so I contacted the council, and they are great and took them away," he said.

"We are very near a river so I was conscious if any of it spilled that it would cause severe damage to the river."

Mr Rooney said local farmers fear that the problem of illegal dumping will only escalate.